Anchored
by SiriuslyGeorgia
Summary: Running into a group of Slytherins wasn't exactly how Lily's quick, solitary, wandless trip to the kitchens was supposed to go.


Afterwards, Lily would never be able to remember how exactly she came to be in this situation. The truth? They came out of nowhere, jeering like howling ghosts, but they were solid and attempting to walk through them would bring more than just a cold chill.

Lily had no choice but to stand her ground as the group of Slytherins closed in around her. Breathing deeply, she assessed them. Mostly male, and all younger than her – there was no doubt her magic prowess surpassed theirs, but she'd left her wand in the dormitory whilst she nipped to the kitchens for a snack. Regret settled in her stomach as she eyed the multiple wands pointed at her. Wandless magic was far beyond her years.

Still, she wasn't Head Girl for nothing.

"Shouldn't you all be heading back to the dungeons?" she asked in the lightest voice she could muster. "It's nearly curfew, and Dumbledore's really cracking down on those of us who are out after ten."

A few beats of silence followed in which Lily's hope dwindled as the Slytherins did not move. Eventually, a scoff of disgust made Lily spin around. The noise had come from Thomas Nott, a fifth year.

"'Us'?" he mimicked, exaggerating the higher tone of Lily's voice. "We don't belong to the same group, mudblood."

Lily's back straightened. She knew her next words were a bad idea, but they were out of her mouth before she could stop them. "My blood is not dirty. It's exactly like yours."

A mixture of laughs and gasps rang in Lily's ears. The next voice belonged to Regulus Black. Lily looked into his face as he snarled that she was a disgrace to wizard-kind, that she was vermin, and didn't belong. Even as he spat at her feet, Lily was thinking how strange it was to hear such venomous words coming out of a body so much like Sirius'.

Despite herself, Lily found herself thinking back to Sirius and James telling her in the Common Room just a week before that she would be a prime target for budding Death Eaters, being a muggle-born Head Girl in such times. She had laughed, thanking them for their concern, but assuring them that she wouldn't be a target. She thought of the way James had nodded, but then told her to be on the lookout anyway. _When did James Potter become so caring?_ she had wondered as she watched him retreat.

She should have listened to them. The others joined in with Regulus' ranting, and the noise built up to a crescendo. Were they really so loud that Lily's fingers were shaking with the vibrations? She wasn't sure, but if they were, why hadn't someone heard them? Lily's proud, straight back had long since crumpled, along with any bravery she'd had.

A lionhearted Gryffindor she wasn't.

"Wait." The clear female voice reverberated around Lily's brain, and she turned to the source. Bianca Zabini was the only one with her wand still pointed at Lily – the others had clearly thought bombardment with foul, derogatory yells was enough. "Let me teach her a proper lesson."

The Slytherin boys all stepped back, grinning to each other. With the sudden lack of noise, Lily's mind was clear. She saw the gap between Bianca and Thomas and lunged forward. Her attempt at escape didn't get her far.

"Crucio!"

Surely not, she wouldn't, she ca –

white

hot

pain

stop

stop

please

end

heart

racing

breathe, breathe, breathe

Lily braced herself for more, but it didn't come. She barely registered the abrupt cutting off of the laughter.

There were… shouts? Not directed at her. Thank Merlin. Lily managed to be relieved. She cracked open her eyes, and saw the floor. Multiple pairs of feet stomped away from her. One pair of feet crept towards her. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Lily knew she should be afraid, she should brace herself, but the exhaustion got the better of her and her eyes closed once more.

One shout crawled into her ears and settled in her brain.

"It's a shame the Dark Lord will have to kill you, Potter, he says you could be destined for greatness!"

Dark Lord, kill? Potter, destiny? Lily could feel her sanity slipping away from her as she remembered the pain of the curse…

Then, suddenly:

An anchor.

A tether connected Lily to the present, her Cruciatus-free body, her mind. She grasped on to it with all the strength she had.

"Ow, Lily, my hand…"

Lily's eyes sprung open. She saw legs, covered in robes, kneeling next to her. In their lap, Lily's hand was grasping theirs. The other person's knuckles had gone white. She relaxed her grip slightly. Rolling on to her back, she saw James Potter's face.

She didn't let go.

"How do you feel?" James asked, the crease between his eyebrows more pronounced than she'd ever seen it.

Using her free hand, Lily pushed herself up into a sitting position, blinking away the lingering black dots. "Terrible."

James squeezed her hand. "I'll kill them," he said steadily. "I'll get you back to Gryffindor Tower, and then I'll kill them."

Lily gazed at his face. He looked deadly serious. "No, James," she sighed.

"They tortured you! There's no way you can stop me." He was seething, Lily could tell, but he managed to keep his voice at a normal volume for her.

Reaching forward, Lily grabbed James' other hand. Her wrists rested on his knees, her face only a few inches away from his. The contact and the flush on his face steadied her thoughts. "Right now, I don't want to stop you," she admitted. "But you won't be able to do it. You're better than they are. Zabini could only perform that on me because she wanted to see me in pain. Deep down, you don't want to harm anyone."

James was silent for a while. "Fine," he said finally, "but we're going to Dumbledore first thing in the morning."

Lily agreed without a fight.

"Can you stand?" James asked. Lily shrugged in response, and James stood up, hoisting Lily up by her hands. Swaying a bit on her feet, Lily leaned her head on James' shoulder. Lightheaded, definitely, but she wasn't certain if it was the after-effects of the curse or something else entirely.

From the front of his robes, James' wand stuck out. As she eyed it, Lily wondered why James didn't just use magic to levitate her and carry her back to Gryffindor Tower, instead of letting her drape her unsteady self all over him.

With her brain fogging again, Lily hardly registered the two of them trudging down the corridor, but when a certain thought flew into her head, it came with a jolt of clarity amidst the confusion. "James Potter, I think I fancy you."

James laughed softly, wistfully. "You've finally figured it out, after all this time?"


End file.
